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cutting bushwackers

J

jkgaddis

NAXJA Forum User
Location
St Petersburg, FL
so im sick and dont have the patience to stare through all of these threads about bushwackers so im just gonna ask. flame all you like. but just remember that when you flame.... well... that makes you a "flamer". so i have 4.5" of lift and im rocking 33x12.50 tsl's. i got some bushwackers today because california law sucks (100% tread coverage) the only thing is that im pretty sure im gonna rub because of the wrap around lip on the bushwackers. has anyone cut this out? anyone have pics? and im not doing tj flares because i dont like the look and they wont give 100%. i love how bushwackers look but i want to be able to wheel too. and im not lifting anymore so any ideas?
 
Hint: Send the bushwackers back.
They will be junk in two years anyway.
If you HAVE to have flares, use something more flexable.
I cut mine all up trying to get them to give more.
I finally threw them in the dumpster.
 
are you talkin about rubbing when u turn or when u flex? because i have bushwackers and 4.5 lift with 33x12.5 and i don't rub at all...but it's different for all
 
first off, holy shit your jeep looks exactly like mine. im talking about flexing. i read the jeepin article and he said he lost the ability to "stuff". no good. how are you running yours? any bumpstops? if so how much?any close up flexed shots? and i really want to run the bushwackers. i dont have the time to be creative. i just dont want to cut them and have the flares loose their shape.
 
Hey... I'm looking for a set of rear bushwackers for an XJ... wanna sell them?
 
jkgaddis said:
so im sick and dont have the patience to stare through all of these threads about bushwackers so im just gonna ask. flame all you like. but just remember that when you flame.... well... that makes you a "flamer". so i have 4.5" of lift and im rocking 33x12.50 tsl's. i got some bushwackers today because california law sucks (100% tread coverage) the only thing is that im pretty sure im gonna rub because of the wrap around lip on the bushwackers. has anyone cut this out? anyone have pics? and im not doing tj flares because i dont like the look and they wont give 100%. i love how bushwackers look but i want to be able to wheel too. and im not lifting anymore so any ideas?
Click to expand...
I have a similar setup....RE 4.5", 33" MTRs, the works, AND Bushwackers. These flares look good, but are somewhat limited in functionality. To make them work you have to cut away plenty of fender (because of the wrap around style) especially in the front. The back of my bushwackers in the front are just about over the front door jam.....
I have seen people cut out the wrap around....still looked pretty sturdy....but I think they would get filled with mud and kinda strain the screws in the body work....also, the screws they send with flares suck, use bolts.
That being said though, with being properly bumpstopped, and flares not cut, I stuff fine and DON'T damage my flares....
Go to my website: http://my-xj.tripod.com/ and look at the 3rd picture down.
Good luck.
 
I cut out my rear flares to make the install easier, but looking back I probably should have just cut enough for the inner lip to clear the body.

The front flares should hold their shape than the rear halves better without the inner lip, but I'd still probably recommend leaving about 1/2" of that inner lip to help the front flares hold their shape.

FWIW, the YJ/TJ BW flares have no inner lip, and they seem to hold their shape just fine.
 
I have 4.5" lift running 33's and I just put bushwackers on 2 weeks ago. When I flex out I rub the inside of the front flares. I stuffed my tires so hard it started to rip the one flare out. I guess I will have to through bolt them now. I thought about cutting mine too.
 
I had a 4.5 inch lift and 33's. No bumpstops. I cut the front Bushwackers leaving a quarter inch of the inner lip on. I also cut the fender up close to the mounting holes. This will maximum clearance. They are still plenty strong. My front tires would just rub when I had the wheel cranked. The rear ones I left alone. The tires in the rear would just barely rub. As you can see, the rear ones are a little harder to keep on. The fronts, no problem.
jeeptrip3-20-04019.jpg
 
I've seen several XJ's with the inner lip of the Bushsmackers cut out.
xjbushwackergutted.jpg


I haven't cut mine up yet but I have ripped 3 of the 4 flares off while on the trail. I've had to install threaded inserts into my fenders so the screws would have something to hold onto since the sheet metal holes were stripped out.
 
haha, that's Dora's yellow XJ. I think she did her rear flares like that after seeing how I did mine. I remember talking with her a bunch about it because of how goofily the rear flares fit and installed.
 
so i put the fronts on today. still sitting in the shop till tomorrow. but looking at them it looks like im gonna rub in the rear pretty good but we will see. they look sick though. but without the flex its pointless. top truck is on right now on outdoor channel so i gotta go.
 
ITs really not that hard of a concept....go flex your XJ, mark where you will need to make some adjustments....CUT....repeat till desired results are obtained...

A dremil or other similar rotary tool will make quick work of cutting precise sections out.
 
I cut the inner lip out of my front bushwackers. Its still pretty sturdy, and my 35's don't rub at all. I have about 6 inches of lift though.
 
Jeepin Jason said:
haha, that's Dora's yellow XJ. I think she did her rear flares like that after seeing how I did mine. I remember talking with her a bunch about it because of how goofily the rear flares fit and installed.
Click to expand...
Yup, it's quite an old pic. What ever happened to her and her XJ anyways? I remember she moved east somewhere after it got wrecked.
 
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